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Veran Legions
The Veran Legions are the private military arm of the Grand Veran Trading Company. The legions are organized, trained, and armed similarly to Imperial Guard Siege Regiments, but are known for maintaining much larger pools of manpower and deploying auxiliary troops as well as maintaining an elite heavy infantry core of Hoplites. The Legions draw most of their basic infantry from the hives of Vera but their auxiliaries are drawn from all over the GVTC realms. They are stationed across the Imperium, protecting GVTC property and furthering their interests, and have fought alongside the Astartes and Imperial Guard against xenos and heretics on multiple occasions. Founding The Veran Legions were formed shortly after the GVTC itself was created. The Legion initially started out as simple security guards for the company but soon the GVTC learned that they required a full fledged military force to defend their assets from pirates, xenos, heretics, and other Imperial Factions. Within a few years, almost a quarter of the company's wealth was being poured into the Legions; dozens of Legions were being deployed around the Cadian Sector, defending planets and assets and conquering new assets. Initially, the Legions were armed with lasguns and bayonets but soon they rearmed the Legions with slug weaponry and close quarters weapons because of the penetrating power of the slugs in urban environments and the unavoidable melees that the infantry were getting into. Recruitment and Training Legionaries The Veran Legions draw their base infantry from both volunteers and conscripts from the Veran middle Hives who are anywhere from 18 - 25. 25,000 of these men are brought up per Legion, making up the core of the Legions' infantry. These men are trained in the frozen tundras of Vera, learning about how to survive the frozen wastes and maintain their equipment there. Rigorous physical training is undergone and a strict diet is imposed, turning the Legionaries into large, strong, and intimidating men. Within the Hives training grounds, Legionaries are instilled with a strong sense of discipline and loyalty their commanding officers and the GVTC, they are taught the basics of tactics, and also trained to follow orders to the letter. They are drilled to become proficient marksmen with the Veran Rifles, trained to use both the Xiphos Pattern Combat Axe for both practical purposes and in combat, make use of various special weapons, and are constantly simulating ubran combat and getting firsthand experience by practicing urban combat operations within the underhives of Vera, fighting against the criminal syndicates there. Training Legionaries takes 3 years, meaning that Vera is always training and arming new Legionaries who are of equal measure to Cadia's own Shock Troops when it comes to discipline, drill, and efficiency. Whenever a Legion comes back to restock and reinforce, there are always battlehardened and well trained Legionaries prepared to join their ranks. Auxiliaries The Legions supplement the majority of their forces with fairly low quality auxiliary troops drawn from all over the GVTC's domains. For every Legionary, there are two auxiliaries, meaning every Legion is deployed with 50,000 of these men. The ages of these men range from 16 - 30 and the training and arming of these troops varies per planet, as do their numbers. If possible, most of the auxiliaries are drawn from the same planet, reducing the amount of tension between the various auxiliary groups. Usually, auxiliaries are trained to be efficient with autoguns and grenade launchers but are given little other training besides being heavily disciplined and drilled by officers along with being given basic survival training. In reality, the auxiliaries are meat shields for the Legionaries. Hoplites Hoplites are the Elite Heavy Infantry of every Legion. Drawn from the nobility of Vera's Hives, both conscripted and volunteers from ages 18 - 21 and . These men are given the best training and equipment that the GVTC can provide, undergoing the most rigorous and painful of training procedures. Every Hoplite is trained as Heavy Assault Infantry being drilled to be experts with Sarissa Pattern Hellguns as well as the complimentary Sarissa Short Sword which can double as a bayonet. They are also drilled to be proficient with heavy weapons like plasma weapons, heavy flamers, Gladius Pattern Bolters, krak missile launchers. They also train out in the tundra alongside the Legionaries to learn survival skills, logistical skills, and to harden them against the elements. Like the Legionaries, the Hoplites fight in the underhive as well for training but also undergo very difficult melees where they fight against one another in nothing but loincloths and win by submission or by killing their opponent. The training of hoplites has a high casualty rate but in the end, every Legion is deployed with a force of 5,500 of these men. Drilled to perfection, these men march and fight in perfect unison with one another where only the most elite of Imperial Guardsmen can be considered their equals. They can be compared to the Lucifer Black from the era of the Great Crusade. Artillery, Tank, and Vehicle Crew The remaining 20,000 men per Legion are the various crew members of the Legion's artillery pieces, tanks, and vehicles it requires. These men are usually conscripts from the lower hives and can be between the ages of 18 - 30 years old. They are usually only trained to operate or man one specific type of vehicle and undergo basic training. However, the artillery crews are trained far more and are well known to be comparable to the Death Korps own artillery men. Colors and Livery Colors The Veran Legions hoist the banner of the Grand Veran Trading Company is hoisted by the Legionaries which is a Black Wolf's Head against a Crimson Red background but the Hoplites have the same banner but colored differently to distinguish themselves from the rank and file of the Legionary ranks. They hoist a banner with a white wolf's head against a deep blue background. This has led to the legions being referred to as the "Armies of the Twin Wolves". Uniforms The uniforms for the Veran Legions varies for each type of soldier: The Legionaries' uniforms are simple yet efficient. They are equipped with thick black carapace armor and are issued crimson trousers and shirts with a thick crimson cloak with a golden trim. Their helms were similar to that of the Kasrkin which was also black but with green lenses. Hoplites uniforms are much more adorned than their Legionary comrades. They were black body-gloves and are equipped with plasteel plated exo-suites that are painted bone white with golden trims along the edges of the plates. They are given thick deep blue cloaks as well with intricately decorated trims of gold. Their ranks are displayed on their pauldrons in gold and they have scrolls and/or seals adoring their armor that tell of feats of valor or glorious deeds they have accomplished. Their helms fully enclosed and bone with with blue lenses and are adorned by deep blue plumes. Auxiliaries had no uniform and were equipped with whatever their home planet decided to grant them, be it carapace armor or simply a shirt and trousers. Equipment Legionary Gear Legionaries are the infantry core of the Legions and are given good gear to perform efficiently for a low cost. Weapons Main Weapons Mark I Veran Long Rifle: Legionaries are equipped with the standard issue Veran Pattern bolt-action Long Rifle that boasts the usage of a 10 round clip with 7.92 plasteel tipped rounds. The reason they are bolt-action is because the GVTC believes that this forces the Legionaries to be conscious of wasting their ammunition and also allows for the Legionary to fire larger caliber rounds without having to worry about barrel rise. They are also very reliable, hardly ever jam, and are heavy enough to be effective as close quarters weapons. Mark II Ripper Shotgun: Legionaries have repeated requested for a weapon that is capable of firing at a faster rate than the Long Rifle, especially against xenos like the Orks who use horde tactics that make the slow firing Long Rifle useless. So, the GVTC has put into circulation the Mark II Ripper which is a much smaller version of the Ripper Gun that fires shells that explode on impact. The magazine can hold 30 explosive shells and can fire semi-automatically, but it is a short range weapon and is intended for trench, urban, or horde combat. These weapons are fairly reliable but a jam can mean the shell explodes within the chamber, causing the rest of the shells to explode, leaving the shooter and anyone around him little more than shredded meat. Mark II Veran Long Rifle: After millenniums of requests, the Legionaries were finally issued a newer version of the Veran Long Rifle that is not Bolt-Action. The Mark II is a semi-automatic rifle that uses a 20 round magazine of 5.5 caliber rounds. It is heavier than the Mark I and should not be used as close combat weapons, for the internal parts will likely be damaged if it is hit too hard. The increased rate of fire and number of rounds is greatly enjoyed by a number of legionaries, especially against human targets but the massively reduced penetrating power and inability to use it as a close quarters weapon has led to many Legionaries sticking with the Mark I due to the common engagements against sturdy xenos like Orks. Mini-Stubber: The Mini-Stubber is a submachine gun that the GVTC has issued to the Legionaries as well. It boasts of a magazine with 50 rounds and is very light and reliable. The problem many Legionaries have with it is the small caliber of bullets, for the mini-stubber utilizes a 12x20mm bullet. Good against lightly armored humans but against xenos or heavily armored enemies, it is next to useless. This has made the weapon very popular for Legionaries that are garrisoning worlds and must deal with human uprisings and criminals but the weapon has seen little action in the field against opposing armies or xenos. Sidearms Autopistol: a standard Imperial pattern autopistol that utilizes 12x20mm ammunition. Xiphos Axe: The Xiphos Pattern Combat Axe is the close combat weapon that the Legionaries are trained to use when he closes with an enemy. It is designed to be top heavy with a bearded axe head and a pick on the opposite side. The bearded side is capable of easily tearing through thin armor, cloth, muscle, and bone while the pick is meant to pierce thicker armor that the beard would not be able to penetrate. Combat Knife: The combat knife is usually taken alongside the Xiphos Axe because it is a solid weapon and has many practical uses. Armor All Legionaries are given the same version of armor. Thick black carapace breastplates, greaves, gauntlet-vambraces, and a fully enclosed helm with blue lenses, an air filter, built in vox, and vocalizer. Hoplite Gear Main Weapons Sarissa Pattern Hellguns: Sarissa Pattern Hellguns are the standard rifles of the Hoplite Cohorts within the Legion. These rifles require more maintenance than standard hellguns because of the tri-rotary barrel incorporated into the weapon. The barrel rotates with every shot meaning that the Hoplite carrying the weapon can fire 3x as many rounds before worrying about the barrels being warped compared to standard hellguns. To allow for the maximum usage of the rotary nature of the weapon, these Hellguns fire slightly less powerful las-shots than regular hellguns but allow for the shooting of 600 las-rounds before the need for the powerpack within the backpack to be replaced. Sarissa Pattern Hellguns can be fired in both semi-automatic and fully automatic. These are perfect weapons for the Hoplites of the Veran Legions because of their role as heavy shock assault troops. Plasma Guns Krak Missile Launchers Flamers Heavy Flamers Glaudius Pattern Bolters: Gladius Pattern Bolters are the newest additions to the Hoplites' arsenal. These weapons fire bolt rounds similar in size to that of the Adeptus Sororitas own bolters and have proven to be extremely effective assault weapons. The Gladius is unique because unlike other Bolters, the Gladius is outfitted with a stock allowing for the Hoplites, who do not wear power-armor, to use the weapon without losing control. These weapons also have built in infra-red lasers that the Hoplites' helmets can detect. The Phalanx Kill-Teams of the Hoplite ranks are the only soldiers outfitted with these weapons and have markedly higher success in combat compared to their Hellgun counterparts due to their increased mobility without the powerpack backpack. Sidearms Hellpistol Plasma Pistol Sarissa Shortsword: The Sarissa Shortsword is a double edged blade of about 2 feet in length, 2.5 including the grip. These weapons are the unique blades of the Hoplites and can be used as both long bayonets or single-handed blades. These blades are only used as bayonets by Hoplites wielding the Sarissa Pattern Hellgun, for the Gladius Bolter is too compact for the blades' length. These have proven to be effective weapons in close quarters and the common battlefields of trenches and urban environments that the Hoplites find themselves in.